Patent trolling: An Indian perspective

Patent laws are enacted to stimulate innovation and invention, which ultimately leads to the benefit of the public at large. They are the negative rights that are granted not only for the personal benefits of the patentee but for the public interest, which is the underlying spirit of the Indian Patent Act, 1970.

Simply put, a patent troll is a company or business function whose primary business activity is to acquire patents for the purpose of asserting them against other companies.

The intent of patent trolling is to enforce patent rights for the sake of licensing revenues and to engage manufacturers in infringement suits to mostly seek damages or to force third parties to purchase licences. Patent trolls are variously called as Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs), Patent Holding Companies (PHCs) or Non-Practising Entities (NPEs).